{"id":9139,"date":"2026-03-20T22:25:28","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T22:25:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/?p=9139"},"modified":"2026-03-20T22:25:28","modified_gmt":"2026-03-20T22:25:28","slug":"trump-admin-eyes-1-million-acres-of-public-land-for-drilling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/?p=9139","title":{"rendered":"Trump Admin Eyes 1 Million Acres of Public Land for Drilling"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"justify-start\">\n<nav class=\"align-left col-span-full mb-base\" data-pom-e2e-test-id=\"breadcrumbs\"\/>\n<p>The Bureau of Land Management is pursuing a plan to allow drilling and fracking on public land across California, including those neighboring prominent national parks and monuments. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/p>\n<p class=\"fp-leadCaption py-tight text-left font-utility text-utility3-size leading-utility3-line-height text-secondary\">Proposed lands for drilling include those located ten miles from Yosemite National Park<!-- --> (Photo: John Dukes 500px\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"article-body\">\n<p>Published March 20, 2026 02:45PM<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>From the Bay Area to Santa Barbara, the Trump administration is eying more than one\u00a0million acres of public land in California for oil and gas drilling and fracking.<\/p>\n<p>In January 2026, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"noopener\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.blm.gov\/announcement\/blm-seeks-input-proposed-oil-and-gas-management-updates-south-central-california-0\">released plans<\/a> to open up parts of Southern California, including public land adjacent to national and state parks, protected coastlines, and waterways. By March, nearly 200,000 people from California <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"noopener\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/biologicaldiversity.org\/w\/news\/press-releases\/californians-submit-hundreds-of-thousands-of-comments-opposing-trump-administrations-fossil-fuel-agenda-on-states-public-lands-2026-03-17\/\">submitted comments<\/a> to the BLM in opposition to the two plans, according to the environmental advocacy group, Center for Biological Diversity (CBD).<\/p>\n<p>Cooper Kass, a CBD attorney, told <em>Outside<\/em> that the plans would open lands right on the border of the Sierra National Forest and within ten miles of Yosemite National Park. It would also open lands on the borders of Sequoia and Pinnacles National Park, Carrizo Plain National Monument, and national forests including Sequoia, Los Padres, and Inyo.<\/p>\n<p>Two plans, one from the BLM Bakersfield and another from the Central Coast Field offices, include public land at the surface, while others include what\u2019s known as \u201csplit-estate.\u201d The latter means the federal government owns the underground mineral rights, while another entity, such as a state government or a private landowner, owns the surface.<\/p>\n<p>The first Trump administration unveiled the plans in 2019. After environmental groups sued, the plans were suspended pending new environmental analyses on how the drilling would affect natural ecosystems and the people around them. In 2026, the agencies published the new assessments, but environmental groups such as CBD and the Sierra Club said the new plans are <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"noopener\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.blm.gov\/announcement\/blm-seeks-input-proposed-oil-and-gas-management-updates-south-central-california-0\">still inadequate<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Trump Administration is once again prioritizing profit over the health of the planet. California\u2019s public lands protect vital habitat and endemic species, bolster local economies, and provide numerous outdoor recreation opportunities for our employees and customers,\u201d Ryan Gellert, CEO of Patagonia, said in a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"noopener\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sierraclub.org\/santa-barbara-ventura\/blog\/2026\/02\/bureau-land-management-plan-would-open-oil-drilling-our-area\">statement<\/a>. \u201cOur public lands and waters should be preserved for the use of the public, not offered up for sale to oil and gas companies.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Environmental group <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"noopener\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/forestwatch.org\/news\/trump-administration-announces-plan-to-open-850000-acres-of-central-california-to-drilling-and-fracking\/\">Los Padres ForestWatch<\/a> catalogued the proposals\u2019 impacts in an interactive map showing which public lands lawmakers would affect if they pass the plan.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople should know just how harmful oil and gas extraction is to people, wildlife, and the environment. These operations don\u2019t belong on public lands where people hike, bike, and plants and animals thrive,\u201d Kass said.<\/p>\n<p>The BLM told <em>Outside<\/em> that the agency will review the comments received and develop a report summarizing them to be incorporated into an analysis later this year.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe BLM welcomes public input and considers new or unique information as part of its decision-making. The BLM will review, consider, and respond to these comments in the final decision, ensuring public involvement in federal actions,\u201d Kate Miyamoto, BLM public affairs specialist, told <em>Outside. <\/em><\/p>\n<p>As of this publication, the <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"noopener\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/eplanning.blm.gov\/Project-Home\/?id=270babe9-a7f2-f011-8406-001dd802fdea\">project<\/a> <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" rel=\"noopener\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/eplanning.blm.gov\/Project-Home\/?id=fb0aabe9-a7f2-f011-8406-001dd802fdea\">websites<\/a> indicate that the BLM expects to publish its final decisions by July 2026.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.outsideonline.com\/outdoor-adventure\/environment\/trump-california-public-lands-drilling-plan\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Bureau of Land Management is pursuing a plan to allow drilling and fracking on public land across California, including those neighboring prominent national parks and monuments. Proposed lands for drilling include those located ten miles from Yosemite National Park (Photo: John Dukes 500px\/Getty Images) Published March 20, 2026 02:45PM From the Bay Area to<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9140,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-9139","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wild-living"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9139","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9139"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9139\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9140"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9139"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9139"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9139"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}